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MAY to AUGUST 2015 / No.2 / 2015

COMMITTEE MEMBERS• Capt. Abdul Razak Hashim president 012 3221844 • Hj. Azlan Hussain vice president 0193811381 • Hj. Mohamed Azraai Ramli 0162567701 • Hj. Haron bin Ahmad 019 3844981 • Hjh. Noraini bt Abdullah 0193860140 • Encik Paul Dorairaj 0173978619 • Encik James Foo Jee Lai 0193874003 • Hj. Munawar Basha Khan 0194167441 • Mdm Krishnaveny 0126349252 • Encik Subramaniam G.P. Sarathy 0193393162.

kita melancong dan pergi ke mana mana kita perlu. Sehingga kita bertemu semula di ruangan ini saya ucapkan selamat sejahtera dan berjumpa di mesyuarat Agung yang akan diadakan pada 13 Jun 2015 di sekolah latihan MAS di Kelana Jaya.

Greetings to all members of Masra wherever you are. At this point of time we are not sure of our position whether or not we will be accepted by the new airline company that replaces Malaysia Airline Sdn. Bhd. We strive to continue to be accepted by the new airline like our current position in MAS with the current facilities if not better and I hope all members will support our effort to do so. We have formed a committee headed by the vice president Encik Azlan Hussain and he is collecting datas in order to speak to management of the new airline. Encik Azlan has met the members of the committee to discuss about the collection of the datas so that when the time comes it would be easy for us to mention what we

iaitu Encik Azlan Hussain. Encik Azlan telah bermesyuarat dengan ahli jawatankuasa dan mengumpulkan data supaya bila sampai masanya ia menjadi mudah untuk kita mengesyorkan kepada penerbangan baru apa yang kita mahu dengan penerbangan yang baru ditubuhkan. Satu daripada cadangan yang akan dibawa ialah supaya penerbangan yang baru ini menerima kita sebagai pesara mereka dan membenarkan kita mengunakan penerbangan dengan kemudahan yang sama seperti kita terima sekarang. Ingin saya memberitahu bahawa kedudukan kita bila penerbangan baru ditubuhkan pada 01 Sept. 2015 semua permohonan untuk mendapat ID90 diberhentikan sehingga kita mendapat kelulusan dari pihak penerbangan yang baru ditubuhkan ini. Kita berharap kita boleh mendapat kebenaran mendapat ID 90 secepat mungkin. Marilah kita sama sama berdoa agar kita dapat kemudahan ini secepat mungkin supaya kita tidak payah menunggu lama sangat untuk memulakan penerbangan

Salam sejahtera kepada semua ahli jauh dan dekat. Pada waktu ini kita berada dalam suasana di mana kedudukan kita belum tentu, adakah kita diterima oleh syarikat yang baru yang menggantikan Syarikat Malaysia Airlines Sdn. Bhd.. Kita berusaha hendak menyambung kedudukan kita dalam Airline yang akan ditubuhkan ini sebagaimana kita berada sekarang ini dengan kemudahan yang ada sekarang dan kalau boleh lebih baik lagi. Saya menyeru supaya semua ahli memberi sokongan terhadap usaha itu.Dalam usaha ini kita telah menubuhkan suatu jawatan kuasa yang di ketuai oleh Naib Presiden

DARI MEJA PRESIDEN

Please note that our MASRA website is now updated with latest info such as, Berita Masra (on-line), News, AGM, Social, Benefits, Travel etc. Our Web “www.pesaramas.com.org” or Google Search type “MASRA”

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From the President’s Desk

Kapt. Abdul Razak HashimPresiden

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want with the new airline. One of the proposals is to accept us as retirees for the new airline and allow us to travel with the same previledges or even better than now. I would like to inform you about our situation when the new airline is formed on 1st Sept. 2015 that requests for ID90 will be stopped until we get approval from the new airline. We hope to get approval for ID 90 as soon as possible.Let us pray that we will get this approval soonest so that we will not wait for long to be able to travel and tour and go anywhere we like.Till we meet again in this column I wish all members ‘selamat sejahtera’ and able to meet you on 13 June 2015 at the next Masra AGM at the MAS training school in Kelana Jaya.

Please be aware if you have any complaint please contact the editor Hj. Abdul Aziz at telephone no

01117694211. If anyone has any article to include in the BM use the email to send the article to us.

NEW MEMBERS

Jacqui Chang Mong Wan 1658Eng Swee Lin 1659Tan Heng Boon 1660Balan a/l Acey 1661Sulhameed bin K.E. Kappal Merican 1662M.S. Baskaran Nair a/lSuumaran Nair 1663Santhi a/p Nadesan 1664

ORBITUARY SO LONG FAREWELL

Francis A Ramasamy TFCAbdul Latif Md. Said ENG

BREAKFAST WALK 2015

10 May Kelana Jaya 07 Jun Taman Jaya (Amcorp) 26 Jul Shah Alam23 Aug Kelana Jaya20 Sep Taman Jaya (Amcorp)18 Oct Shah Alam22 Nov Kelana Jaya20 Dec Taman Jaya (Amcorp)

7 STEPS TO HEALTHY, HAPPY AGING

Getting older doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll have a slew of medical conditions or poor quality of life. Getting older involves change, both negative and positive, but you can enjoy aging, if you understand what’s going on with your body and take steps to maintain your health. Many different things happen to your body as you age. Your skin, bones and even brain may start to behave differently. Don’t let the changes that come with old age catch you by surprise.Your bones. Bones can become thinner and more brittle in old age, especially in women, sometimes resulting in the fragile bone condition called osteoporosis. Thinning bones and decreasing bone mass can put you a risk for falls that can easily result in broken bones. Be sure to talk with your physician about what you can do to prevent osteoporosis and falls.Your heart. While a healthy diet and regular exercise can keep your heart healthy, it may become slightly enlarged, your heart rate may lower, and the walls of the heart may thicken.Your brain and nervous system. Getting older can cause changes in your reflexes and even your senses While dementia is not a normal consequence of old age, it is common for people to experience some slight forgetfulness as they get older. Cells in the brain and nerves can be damaged by the formation of plaques and tangles, abnormalities that could eventually lead to dementia.Your Digestive System. As you age your digestive tract becomes more firm and rigid, and doesn’t contract as often. This change can lead to problems such as constipation, stomach pain and feelings of nausea, a better diet can help.Your senses. You may notice that your vision and hearing aren’t quite as sharp as they once were. You may start to lose your sence of taste-flavours may not seem as distinct to you. Your senses of smell and touch may also weaken. Your body is taking longer to react and needs more to stimulate it.Your teeth. The tough enamel that protects your teeth from decay can start to wear away over the years, leaving you susceptible to cavities. Gum disease is also a concern for older adults. Good dental hygiene can protect your teeth and gums. Dry mouth, which is a common side effect of many medications that seniors take , may also be a problem.

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Your skin. With old age, your skin loses its elasticity and may start to sag and wrinkle. However, the more you protected your skin from sun damage and smoking when you were younger, the better your skin will look as you get older. Start protecting your skin now to prevent further damage, as well as skin cancer.Your sex life. After menopause, when menstruation stops, many women experience physical changes like a loss of vaginal lubrication. Men may experience erectile dysfunction fortunately both problems can be treated.Many bodily changes are a natural part of ageing, but they don’t have to slow you down. What’s more, there’s a lot you can do to protect your body and keep it as healthy as possible.

Two Tamil men got into a bus in New York, They sat down and engaged in an animated conversation the lady sitting next 2 them ignores them at first, but the attention is galvanized when she hears one of them said the following:“Emma cums first,Den I cum,Den two asses cum together,I cum once-a more!2 asses, they cum 2gether againI cum again and pee twice,Then I cum one last time”The lady can’t take this any more and shouted “you foul-mouthed sex obsessed Indian, in this country we don’t speak aloud about our sex lives however extraordinary they are.”“Hey cool down lady,” said the man“Who is talkin’ about sex?I’m a just telling my friend how to spell “MISSISSIPPI”.

The mother-in-law arrives home from shopping to find her son-in-law Paddy in a steaming rage and hurriedly packing his suitcase.“What happened Paddy?” she asks anxiously.“What happened!! I’ll tell you what happened. I sent an email to my wife (your daughter) telling her I was coming home today from my fishing trip. I get home... and guess what I found? Yes, your daughter, my wife Jean, naked with Joe Murphy in our marital bed! This is unforgivable, the end of our marriage. I’m done. I’m leaving forever!”“Ah now, calm down, calm down Paddy!” says his mother-in-law. “There is something very odd going on here. My daughter would never do such a thing! There must be a simple explanation. I’ll go speak to her immediately and find out what happened.”Moments later, the mother-in-law comes back with a big smile.“Paddy. I told you there must be a simple explanation.

She never got your E-mail!”- contributed by Paul Dorairaj

KEYS TO AGEING WELLWhile maintaing your physical is important to healthy ageing, it’s also key to value the experience and maturity you gain with advancing years. Practicing healthy habits throughout life is ideal, but it’s never too late to reap the benefits of taking good care of yourself even as you get older.Here are some healthy aging tips that are good advice at any stage of life.Stay physically active with regular exercise.Stay socially active with friends and family and within your community.Eat a healthy, well balanced diet-dump the junk food in favour of fiber-rich, low fat and low cholesterol eating.Don’t neglect yourself. Regular check-ups with your doctor, dentist, and optemetrist are even more important now.• Take all medication as directed by your doctor.• Limit all alcohol consumption and cut out smoking.• Get the sleep that your body needsFinally, taking care of your physical self is vital, but it’s important that you tend to your emotional health as well. Reap the rewards of your long life, and enjoy each and every day. Now is the time to savour good health and happiness.

- by Krishnaveny

James Foo and Ronny Kung with Golden Rock at background.

Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon Burmese most Sacred site.

Check Point for Open-Deck lorry carrying tourists, locals and monks up to Golden Rock, Mt.Kyaiktiyo.

Open-Deck lorry winding up the narrow road to Golden Rock.

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Mesmerizing Golden Rock At Mt. Kyaiktiyo Myanmar.Getting to Myanmar’s (formely known as Burma) Buddhist attractions, specially the Golden Rock atop Mt. Kyaiktiyo, is no stroll in the park as it involves a five-hour journey from Yangon. This popular pilgrimage site is the pride of Mon State, near to the Thai border.

Recently, with another adventurous Masra member Mr. Ronny Kung, we flew by MH to Yangon (formerly Rangoon). From here it was a five hours journey by road to a small town as Kin Pun base camp. Because of the steep slopes another 10 km to the peak of Mt. Kyaiktiyo, and this is where the fun begins - tourist, locals and monks alike have no choice but to take the open- deck lorries that ply the route at irregular intervals. 43 passengers are squeezed – like sardines six to a row – at the back of the open air lorry. Even then, passengers have to wait till the lorry is full before it departs. The 10 km trip is reminiscent of the road to Genting Highlands but there were a few drastically steep inclines and several hairpin bends that made me closed my eyes and think of the Almighty.

on your level of fitness, the hike up the steep slope could take 30 minutes to an hour. If you feel the hike is torture, you can take easier way-being carried up by four Burmese men (like a king or queen) in a makeshift sedan chair consisting of two bamboo poles-two men in front and two at the back. So me and Ronny hiked up, managed to finallly reach the

Finally we reached a point where even the sturdy lorry could go no further, and the Golden Rock and still 1 km away! There was no choice but to resort to foot power-yours or someone else’s! Depending

James Foo at The Old Royal Palace in Mandalay.

- bersambung ke muka surat 5

The new four lane highway linking Yangon to the New Capital - Naypyitaw.

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Golden Rock. It was a sight to behold! This Golden Rock at Mt. Kyaiktiyo,1100 meters above sea level, is among the most sacred sites in Myanmar. The boulder precariously balances on the edge of a cliff and is topped by a small stupa. According to legend, it is kept in place by a single hair of the Buddha. The Golden Rock is not made of solid gold despite its colour because its shine is due to the thick layer of gold leaf pasted on by the worshippers.

I walked gingerly across the small platform to the Golden Rock, placed my palm on the surface of the rock, and felt it a bit cold and a kind of unexplained sensation! I wouldn’t dare placed my palm harder or made a little push, lest the boulder really tumbled down from the mountains! Be assured, the Burmese believe that the boulder is prevented from rolling down the mountain by a single strand of Buddha’s hair. Well, it was trully a mesmerizing experience, witnessing and touching the incredible gravity-defying Golden Rock atop Mt. Kyaiktiyo.

As we still have some time in Myanmar, we toured around Yangon, visited the historical sites, especially the most sacred site to the Burmese, the Shwedagon Pagoda. I read of the new capital, Naypyitaw, and made our way there on the new four-lane highway from Yangon. Naypyitaw is easily 10 times larger in area than Putra Jaya. From the new capital, it was another 8 hours journey by “Road to Mandalay”, the old royal capital. Dear fellow members, if you intend to visit Myanmar, formerly called Burma, is known to the world as the Golden Land, a land steeped in centuries of culture, abundance of historical heritage.You can email me at :- jeelaifoo@yahoo.com. If you need any information or assistance for your plan to visit Myanmar

Contributed by:- James Foo Jee Lai.

2014 Held at DUBLIN, IRELAND on 5 October 2014Malaysia Airline System Athletic Sports Club held a dinner at a restaurant in Kelana Jaya on 26 February 2015 to celebrate the success and achievements of the partcipants taking part in the World Airline Road held at Dublin, Ireland last year on 05 October 2014. Altogether 22 MAS runners from the Athletic Club who took part in the Race, including 2 Masra members, James Foo Jee Lai and Selvarajah were at the dinner on this particular night.MAS Managing Director Tuan Ahmad Jauhari Yahya was also present that nignt to grace the dinner function. Since the dinner was held in the midst of the Chinese New Year festive season, Mr. James Foo donated and presented mandarin oranges to all the diners and to wish them good fortunes and happiness. It was truly and enjoyable evening for all the diners, sharing fond memories of the race in Dublin.Contributed by Selvarajah

Group photos of MAS runners & 2 Masra members at the dinner. Seated 4th from left: MAS MD Ahmad Jauhari Yahaya. Far Left: Selvarajah. Standing 2nd from left:

James Foo Jee Lai.

MAS MD Ahmad Jauhari Yahaya receiving Mandarin Oranges from James Foo, on left is Selvarajah.

Mas Athletic Club Runners receiving Mandarin Oranges from James Foo. On left is Selvarajah.

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Dear Son ,I am writing this to you because of 3 reasons....

1. Life, fortune and mishaps are unpredictable, nobody knows how long he lives. Some words are better said early.

2. I am your father, and if I don’t tell you these, no one else will.

3. What is written is my own personal bitter experiences that perhaps could save you a lot of unnecessary heartaches. Remember the following as you go through life

a. Do not bear grudge towards those who are not good to you. No one has the responsibility of treating you well, except your mother and I.

To those who are good to you, you have to

treasure it and be thankful, and ALSO you have to be cautious, because, everyone has a motive for every move. When a person is good to you, it does not mean he really likes you. You have to be careful, don’t hastily regard him as a real friend.

b. No one is indispensable, nothing is in the world that you must possess.

Once you understand this idea, it would be easier for you to go through life when people around you don’t want you anymore, or when you lose what/who you love most.

c. Life is short. When you waste your life today, tomorrow

you would find that life is leaving you. The earlier you treasure your life, the better you enjoy life.

d. Love is but a transient feeling, and this feeling would fade with time and with one’s

mood. If your so called loved one leaves you, be patient, time will wash away your aches and sadness.

Don’t over exaggerate the beauty and sweetness of love, and don’t over exaggerate the sadness of falling out of love.

e. A lot of successful people did not receive a good education, that does not mean that you can be successful by not studying hard! Whatever knowledge you gain is your weapon in life.

One can go from rags to riches, but one has to start from some rags!

f. I do not expect you to financially support me when I am old, neither would I financially support your whole life. My responsibility as a supporter ends when you are grown up. After that, you decide whether you want to travel in a public transport or in your limousine, whether rich or poor.

g. You honour your words, but don’t expect others to be so. You can be good to people, but don’t expect people to be good to you. If you don’t understand this, you would end up with unnecessary troubles.

h. I have bought lotteries for umpteen years, but I could never strike any prize. That shows if you want to be rich, you have to work hard! There is no free lunch!

i. No matter how much time I have with you, let’s treasure the time we have together. We do not know if we would meet again in our next life.

Love, Your papa.

Beautiful letter written by a father to his son? A “must send” to your children....Following is a letter to his son from a renowned Hong Kong TV broadcaster cum Child Psychologist. The words are actually applicable to all of us, young or old, children or parents.! This applies to daughters too. All parents can use this in their teachings to their children.

- contributed by Paul Dorairaj

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THE ART OF LIVING – a reflectionBite what can be chewed

One Sunday morning, a wealthy man sat in his balcony enjoying sunshine and his coffee when a little ant caught his eye which was going from one side to the other side of the balcony carrying a big leaf several times more than its size. The man watched it for more than an hour. He saw that the ant faced many impediments during its journey, paused, took a diversion and then continued towards destination.At one point the tiny creature came across a crack in the floor. It paused for a little while, analyzed and then laid the huge leaf over the crack, walked over the leaf, picked the leaf on the other side then continued its journey. The man was captivated by the cleverness of the ant, one of Nature’s tiniest creatures. The incident left the man in awe and forced him to contemplate over the miracle of Creation. In front of his eyes there was this tiny creature, lacking in size yet equipped with a brain to analyze, contemplate, reason, explore, discover and overcome. Along with all these capabilities, the man also noticed that this tiny creature shared some human shortcomings.The man saw about an hour later the creature had reached its destination – a tiny hole in the floor which was entrance to its underground dwelling. And it was at this point that the ant’s shortcoming that it shared with the man was revealed. How could the ant carry into the tiny hole the large leaf that it had managed to carefully bring to the destination? It simply couldn’t ! So the tiny creature, after all the painstaking and hard work and exercising great skills, overcoming all the difficulties along the way, just left behind the large leaf and went home empty-handed. The ant had not thought about the end before it began its challenging journey and in the end the large leaf was nothing more than a burden to it.The creature had no option, but to leave it behind to reach its destination. The man learned a great lesson that day.Isn’t that the truth about our lives?We worry about our family, we worry about our job, we worry about how to earn more money, we worry about where we should live – 5 bedroom or 6 bedroom house, what kind of vehicle to buy – a Mercedes or BMW or a Porsche, what kind of dresses to wear, all sorts of things, only to abandon all these things when we reach our destination – The Grave. We don’t realize in our life’s journey that these are just burdens that we are carrying with utmost care and fear of losing them, only to find that at the end they are useless and we can’t take them with us. CAN WE???

Contributed by Pathma Naban, edited by Veny

Number One.“I am a medical student currently doing a rotation in toxicology at the poison control centre in Brisbane Today, this woman called in very upset because she caught her little daughter eating ants. I quickly reassured her that the ants are not harmful and there would be no need to bring her daughter into the hospital. She calmed down and, at the end of the conversation, happened to mention that she had given her daughter some ant poison to eat in order to kill the ants. I told her that she better bring her daughter into the emergency room right away”.

Number Two.

Some Boeing employees on the airfield inSydney decided to steal a life raft from one of the 747s. They were successful in getting it out of the plane and home. Shortly after they took it for a float on the river, they noticed a Westpac Rescue Helicopter coming towards them. It turned out that the chopper was homing in on the emergency locator beacon that activated when the raft was inflated. They are no longer employed at Boeing.

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Masra golf was played on the above date at the Sri Selangor Golf Club and this time 43 partcipants took part the best attendance for Masra Golf at any one time. Our advisor did not play as the injury on his shoulder has not fully healed. However he made it to the lunch and delivered his address.As usual breakfast started at seven and tee off at eight in the morning. The weather was favourable and the game finished as early as twelve noon. Lunch started at one and then the address by the President followed by the address of Tan Sri Aziz and prize giving. The champion this time was Encik Mohamad Dit.

Haji Munawar Basha Khan bin Haji Zakaria a committee member of Malaysia Airlines Association, MASRA, was recently awarded the Pingat Jasa Kebaktian (PJK) by the Penang state government. The award was conferred by the T.Y.T. Yang Di Pertua Negeri Pulau Pinang in conjunction with his 76th birthday at the investiture ceremony on 22nd September 2014 held at Dewan Sri Pinang, Penang. The medal is conferred on individuals who have dedicated invaluable and devoted services to the state. Haji Munawar has been actively involved in the Malaysian Pakistani league, Persatuan Akidah Pulau Pinang, Majis Perundingan Muhibbah Pulau Pinang and Persatuan Melayu Pulau Pinang (PEMENANG). Haji Munawar who joined Malaysia Airlines on 26th March 1973 retired on 28th February 2007 after 34 years of service.

Dicetak oleh Al Hikmah Sdn Bhd. Lot 447, Jalan Perusahaan 2, Bandar Baru Sungai Buloh, 47000 Sungai Buloh Selangor. Tel: 03-61574699.

MASRA GOLF HELD AT THE SRI SELANGOR CLUB

HELD ON 8TH APRIL 2015.

Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahman giving away prizes.

Baharudin Ngah and his group taking a photograph.

43 participants taking a picture before tee off.

Haji Munawar Basha Khan receiving his award from Yang Di Pertuan Negeri Pulau Pinang.